Wolves
by ClosingStatement
Summary: Once you had a mate, you were supposed to be with only them, loyal, loving, and forever. The only problem for Alfred was that his mate had died. And he may or may not have his sights set on the other rival pack leader. But, that becomes the least of his problems when The Higher Power's plan starts to commence- And Alfred's right in the middle of it all.
1. Love ends and begins

**(DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN HETALIA)**

I leapt through the woods with grace as a howl sounded through the air. As I neared the clearing, I could smell her blood. It contaminated everything and anything. I gagged but kept going forward, I didn't have any time to waste. I busted through the foliage to see her lying in a red puddle of blood, the moonlight shining on her pale blonde coat. I ran to her and fell to her side whimpering slightly. Unable to keep her form, she shifted into a woman with a curvaceous figure and long platinum blonde hair. Her almost purple eyes gleamed with unshed tears as she weakly turned her head to look at me. I sifted back to a human as well and clutched her hand as the life drained out of her. A sob escaped my lips and tears rolled down my cheeks. In a broken and raspy voice I whispered, ''T-The baby… did it…?" She closed her eyes and her tears escaped their confinements. I bowed my head and sobbed into her now-cool skin. I watched as she parted her dry lips in one last attempt to speak, her once smooth and angelic voice coming out as sharp as a knife. Her gentle eyes grew serious and she strained to lift her head. With the last of her energy, she tightened her grip on my hand and said to me sternly,

"Find a-a new… mate. L-Love them… like you have… me and live… on…" I cried even louder and hugged her nude form to me,

"N-NO! D-Don't leave me! I love you too much! P-Pl...ease…" With a last smile, her eyes slipped closed, never to open again. I raised my head back and howled a deep, mournful, and pain filled howl for my now deceased mate.

**(A/N: Hello loves! :D I have just finished reading a spectacular fan fiction that inspired me to write this up! It's called "Tsuki no Waltz" by Tsuki the wolf and I HIGHLY recommend it! Of course, it's UsUk and 'M' rated but it's brilliant nonetheless! I have a plan for this story but I will probably change it along the way, I end up doing that with all of my stories… ^.^' Sorry this chapter is so short, honestly I'm not sure if I'll ever get around to continuing; even if I have plans for this story…ANYWAYS! This story will be updated randomly and not very often; sorry… ^^' I will try my best to update on Friday weekly but seeing as I have to use my friends' internet access…. I might skip a week. I know that that sucks but unfortunately, as you fellow writers out there know, life can be a bitch and stuffs. WOW… . This is a long ass author's note. Oh well. *shrugs* Please read and review! :3)**


	2. Face off

**(DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN HETALIA)**

A growl sounded from behind me after I had finished my howl. Turning around, I found my rival pack's leader, Arthur, glaring at me in his wolf form. While my coat is tan and thick haired with a rough, dark brown collar around my neck, his is an almost white coat with a lone orange-blonde spot on his left eye. His emerald green eyes burned at me and his hair started to raise on end. "You're in my territory." Short but not sweet. I could barely decipher his words from snarls as he started to advance towards me. I tried to transform but my body had not yet recovered from the emotional shock and thus refused to cooperate. Wolves, especially rival packs, are territorial and usually don't think twice about attacking an intruder, regardless of their form. Alpha males however, are usually more mature and calm-natured. They're able to slow down and find reasoning behind others' actions. So I was mildly surprised when Arthur went directly into defense mode, he, out of all the alpha males, is the most reasonable leader. Every time that I can remember, crossing into his territory was never a big deal with him. That is as long as you weren't vandalizing anything. As much as I didn't want this to turn into a fight, I didn't want to tell him that my mate had passed. This usually triggers an instinct for males to try to become the leader. His lips pulled back into a snarl, showing off his razor sharp canines,

"I said you are on my t-" A whimper cut off Arthur's sentence and he turned around with raised eyebrows. Another whimper sounded and I craned my neck to find a small white pup. His blue eyes were wide with fear and worry and his fluffy tail was between his quaking hide legs. "Peter," Arthur's voice was low with warning and assertion, "go back to the pack. I told you to stay behind." Arthur's voice had also lost its rough, sharp tone. It, dare I say, almost sounded caring and gentle. The pup let out a startled cry when one of my pack mates howled from far away. They had heard Natalia's cries as well and were currently on their way to the clearing. Peter wasn't the only one who heard it; I did too and recognized the howl. It was Ivan, Natalia's older brother, who could and would rip Arthur to shreds if he saw him close to Natalia's body.

"You need to go. Now." I tried to put as much urgency in my voice as possible.

"Excuse me?" Arthur turned around to face me, and he did not look happy, "This is MY territory, I don't need to go anywhere. Are you looking for a fight Jones?" He snarled again.

"No, dude, I'm serious. Ivan's coming and once he sees that his sister's dead, he'll be out for blood. Most likely yours because he knows I'm her mate and I can't harm her. You, on the other hand, are our rival; you could've easily killed her." Another howl sounded and I turned my head around a bit; he was getting closer. "Plus, you have a pup to look after," I motioned to the pup and Arthur used his tail to push Peter behind his body, "You need to leave." I could see in his eyes that if it weren't for Peter being there, he would've been more than willing to fight.

"Fine. But this isn't over yet, Jones." He turned around and prepared picked Peter up by the scruff of his neck. He turned around and sniffed the air a bit, "And next time, you should keep your dogs in-line." He grabbed Peter and dashed off to the other side of the clearing, disappearing from my vision in a few seconds. Too worried about the upcoming argument, I let the insult slide and rotated my body to where I could see Ivan standing at the edge of the clearing. His violet eyes were wide and his form was still. In all but a second, he dashed toward us, changing form in mid run.

"N-Natalia!" He fell to his knees and clung to her, shaking her roughly. "Natalia!" His voice shook and I could hear tears clogging his throat, "Natalia!" He bent over her form, pulling her body close to his, much like I did at first. "Natalia, Natalia, Natalia, NATALIA!" His screams wedged a knife in my heart and I choked back tears. Everyone in my pack was really close to her, Ivan and I being the closest. Ivan spun around and his eyes burned with anger. "Did you do this?" He whispered. "DID YOU DO THIS?" He yelled in my direction and let go of her body. He, too, could not transform so he pounced on me in his human form, hands on my neck trying to squeeze. His grip tightened with every breath he took. "Did. You. Do. This?" I started to feel light headed as my airway was being crushed. I managed to choke out an "N-No." He didn't stop though. Slowly I could see my vision spotting with darkness and could feel my limbs going limp. He shook his arms and each time I could feel the back of my head beating into the ground. The last thing I remember is a "NO!" being yelled through the night sky and the weight lifting off my throat and body before I blacked out.

**(A/N: Hey guys… I got an incredibly sweet PM from one of my readers and it encouraged me to continue this. I know this chapter's short but I wanted to get it up and keep rolling with the story! I will more than likely have another chapter up tomorrow, for some reason I can't stop writing this! Oh and a big thank you goes out to the two lovely reviews I got! They made my day and gave me some fuel to continue writing! I'm having a hard time choosing between this story and "Musical Love". I adore the plot I have for both and each one has their own little plot bunnies that refuse to leave me alone… ^^" I think I will just let you guys decide which one you would rather me do. And yes, Alfred's ex-mate (?) is Belarus~ I apologize for Russia's OOC-ness and anyone else's; I haven't really had any practice with writing them… Ehheh… I'm not sure if I want it to be UsUk or UkUs…Maybe UkUsUk? ;D I dunno we'll see as the story progresses! If you see any mistakes, please point them out so I can fix them! Long author's note is long... O.O Oh, well, until next time! Bye loves! :D)**


	3. Alfred's past Part 1

**(DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN HETALIA.)**

**(Okay guys, I usually don't put author's notes at the start but I will warn you now, this chapter is a flashback and it contains some gore. I have the paragraph marked so that if you don't want to read the details, you can skip it. Enjoy and I'll see you at the bottom! c: )**

"Alfred, dear, someone's at the door." My mom called out to me from our small kitchen that's connected to the living room. I paused my racing game and hopped up from the beige colored couch to go and answer the door. I heard Madeleine, my twin sister, giggle from the kitchen, probably helping mom with dinner. They were in the process of making my and Madeleine's birthday supper, steak and French fries. I had gotten to pick it that year since Maddie did the year before; she ended up choosing pancakes and Canadian bacon. When I got up to the door, I dragged a step stool we kept near it in front of the peephole and peered out of it. Oddly enough, I didn't see anyone but a pure white dog. I stepped down, moved the stool out of the way and undid the locks.

"Hello?" I stuck my head out and the dog looked up to me with big bright brown eyes. I smiled and bent down to pet it. "Hey little guy! Where're your owners?" I turned my head to look left then right but upon seeing no one around, I looked back down to the pup. He was giving me a weird look that caused me to shiver slightly. "What's wron-" The dog pounced on me and I heard its teeth clash together at their attempts to bite me. "Ah! Mom!" I yelled and struggled against the dog's strength but soon the dog ended up biting my right shoulder. I cried out in pain as blood seeped through my clothes from the wound. Kicking my legs frantically, I tried to throw the dog off but its jaw was latched firmly on my flesh. Tears pricked at my eyes from the pain and I heard Maddie gasp behind me. I saw more dogs come in from the doorway and yelled back at Maddie, "Go! Hide Maddie!" She ran off and I briefly wondered where my parents are before two large dogs come bounding in from the hall leading to my family's bedrooms. The bigger one had blonde fur and steel blue eyes that reminded me of my dad's, and the smaller, but still big, one had a chocolate brown colored coat with violet-blue eyes that reminded me of my mom's. The dog attacking me saw them too because with a loud snarl, it clamped its teeth around my shoulder even tighter causing it to break and me to pass out from the excruciating pain.

.o. Time Skip .o.

My eyes opened blearily and I groaned in pain. Bringing my hand up, I touched the wound and felt wetness. I brought my hand into my sight and found that slick blood was coating my hand. Trembling, I tried to sit up but the pain that rocketed through my body caused me to lay back down. Looking around, I saw that I was still were I was attacked. I also noticed that I had my dad's favorite bomber jacket over me. Confused, I pushed it to the side, careful not to let it touch my wound. A soft, almost inaudible whimper sounded from behind me and I recognized it as Maddie.

"M-Maddie!" I gritted my teeth and gripped my shoulder as I sat up and turned around. What I saw caused my jaw to drop. The first thing I noticed was blood. Everything was covered in it, the walls, the furniture, and the floors. The next thing I noticed was the disarray of everything. My mom liked to keep the house as spotless as possible and I knew that this sight would've made her faint. The couch was torn to pieces and was flipped over on its back. The TV was smashed against the floor, probably from a fall. Lamps, pictures, mementos, everything was either broken or strewn around the room, some both. The kitchen light flickered and swayed, hanging by only a few wires. Holding onto my breath and shoulder, I rose up and started to stumble my way to the source of the whimpering. A couple of times I fell against the blood-smeared walls and hissed in pain. My shoulder was no doubt, broken, probably shattered. I called out and noticed that my voice sounded rough and scratchy, probably from the screaming, "M-Maddie?" I reached the door to my little sister's room and pushed it open with the toe of my sneaker. A lump was formed under her soft yellow duvet and I noticed it was shaking slightly, "M-Maddie?" I tried again but just a tad bit louder.

The lump stilled and a sniffled, "A-Al?" came from it.

"Yeah, it's me." Suddenly the covers were thrown off and I found my arms full of a crying girl.

"I-I th-thought you w-were dead!" She sobbed into my shoulder and I grunted in pain. She pulled back and a worried and guilty expression took over her face, "Are you hurt?" I tried to laugh and brush it off saying, "It's just a scratch…" but she was having none of it.

Then something clicked in my head, "Where's mom and dad?" She looked up at me with wide, red-rimmed eyes. Her lower lip started to tremble and tears rolled-more like gushed-from her eyes. It wasn't until she buried her head into my chest and gripped onto my shirt for dear life as she sobbed that it hit me. The blood… The dogs… Maddie's tears… A strangled sound came from my throat and I detached myself from my sister. She cried out and fell again her bed, burying her face into one of her pillows. Slowly and with wide, unblinking eyes, I made my way out of her room and back down the hallway. When I finally reached the end of it, my whole body had gone numb, I couldn't even feel the intense throbs of pain that came from my shoulder. Both of my hands flew up to my mouth and I could feels tears coming to my eyes. From this angle, I could see my mom's body laying in a large pool of blood in the kitchen. I sobbed and took off as fast as I could towards her. I nearly tripped when I saw the level of damage.

**(Warning: Slightly gruesome details/images skip to next paragraph if you're not comfortable with it*) **From what I could see, she was completely unclothed but her long hair had covered her breasts from view. Many scars littered the remaining flesh she had along with sickening yellow-green bruises. Her left leg was bent all the way around to where her knee was almost tearing out of her skin. Her torso was coated in blood from the long scratches that extended diagonally from her hipbone to under her hair that covered her breasts. Her left leg had many bite marks and was also covered in scratches, busies, and blood. Over to her side, her right arm laid, severed from its socket. Her once beautiful, serene face was bloodied and distorted but still held a look of pain from when she passed. My dad was on the other side of her and he wasn't in a better condition. His legs were covered in bites and scratches and were twisted painfully, his arms were at odd angles, probably dislocated, and he too was unclothed. Deep crimson red blood was splattered everywhere and it stained my vision.

**(Okay, you're good now) **I gagged and turned around to vomit. It burned my throat and the acidic taste made me want to wash my mouth out with soap. I dropped to my knees, curled up into the fetal position and let wave after wave of tears and sadness wash over me. I stayed like that for about 20 minutes. Slowly, the pain of my shoulder started to come back and I winced as I uncurled. My face felt puffy and it hurt to do anything, even breathe but I knew that I had to take care of my shoulder. Even with my young age of nine, my father had been a doctor so I knew vaguely of what needed to be done. Standing up proved to be extremely painful because as soon as I moved my shoulder, blood started oozing out of it and I cried out in pain. Biting my lower lip, I muffled my cries and pushed upwards with my good arm. I staggered a bit but when I finally got on my feet I heard Maddie call out to me. I frozen and thought fast, there was no way I could let her see this.

"S-Stay in your room!" I grounded out the sentence and tried my hardest not to let pain overcome me again. My vision had already started to dance with black spots and my head felt like a heavy chunk of lead. I had to do this, I had to get Maddie save. There was no way of knowing if the people who had killed my parents were coming back or not and I was damn sure not going to let them hurt my baby sister; big brothers had to be their heroes and even if I was only older by a few hours, I intended to live up to that expectation. I groaned under my breath as my shoulder jolted in pain. "C'mon Al… You can do this." I kept repeating that under my breath as encouragement. I started to wobble over to the hallway where I could use the walls as support. My shoulder started to increase in pain and I almost fainted right there. I kept on though, and made it to the bathroom. As I opened the door, I was extremely relieved to find that it had been untouched except for the fact that there was a stuffed bear in the middle of the floor. Maddie must've hid in here earlier. I started to smile but it quickly turned into a pained grimace as a wave of nausea and pain flooded my system. I fell against the doorway and hissed in pain when I gripped my shoulder. "Keep goin' Al. You gotta keep goin'." I went up to the sink and leaned on it for support. Sweat started dripping off my brow from exertion and I reached up to open the medicine cabinet's door. I plunged my hand into the confinements of it and found an ACE bandage, painkillers and cleaning alcohol.

"Crap. No gauze." I looked over to the side of the sink where we kept the toilet paper and grabbed a roll of it. I knew that I should use paper towels at least but I didn't know if I could make it to the kitchen- or even look at it now. There was no way I could pull my shirt off so I grabbed hold of it with my good a hand and started pulling at it. I screamed out in pain but continued to tear it until it ripped off. I threw the bloodied, torn shirt to the ground and started to cry from the pain. Hastily, I popped off the top to the painkillers and swallowed two dry, but only two. I knew the dosing limit and I didn't want to OD. Sighing and running my hand through my hair, I looked at the cleaning liquid. That was going hurt, /_bad/_. I grabbed it and wedged the bottle between my torso and the sink as I unscrewed the cap. I placed it back on the ledge of the sink, took a wad of toilet paper, and pressed it on the nozzle. Gripping the paper and the bottle, I tilted it upside down to let the liquid absorb into the toilet paper. I brought the wad up to my wound but put it back down.

Quickly, I bent down, grabbed my shirt off the floor, and stuck a thick chunk of the clean part into my mouth. This time I took the wad and started to clean the open wound. It would've been a whole lot less painful if it was only a bite mark but the dog's teeth had almost completely shredded the surrounding skin while also crushing the bone underneath it. A cry came out of my throat when the liquid started stinging on the open wound. My hand trembled, along with most of my body but I kept cleaning it. I squeezed my eyes closed and felt hot tears cascade down my cheeks. Finally, after I had cleaned the wound to the best of my ability, I dropped the wad soaked with alcohol and blood and my shirt I was biting onto in the sink and hung my head. The wound was clean, throbbing painfully, and stinging from the alcohol taking affect. I let out a long and shaky breath while I stood back up.

"A-Al?" Maddie was standing in the doorway gaping at my shoulder. The skin around the wound was an angry red and the wound itself was bad. It was frayed and beginning to bleed again. Upon seeing this, I quickly grabbed more toilet paper and pressed it against it. I hissed at the pain and gritted my teeth. "Oh, Al…" Her voice held so much sorrow in it that it made me look up. Tears were gathering in her eyes again and she hesitantly reached out to hold the makeshift gauze. I held back another hiss when pressure was applied by her hands and started to wrap it with the ACE bandage. We stayed silent except for the occasional sniffle from her and hiss of pain from me. When we were done, she unwrapped the scarf she had around her neck and tied it into an improvised sling for my arm. Very carefully, she helped me slide into it and I sighed when a little bit of pressure was relieved.

"Thanks Maddie." She looked up at me and smiled a little ruefully.

"Mom and dad are dead… right?" I nodded slowly and bit my lip.

"Don't worry…" I looked at her and smiled, "You still have me and I swear on my Superman pajamas that I'll protect you!" She giggled and smiled a bit. It felt really good to see her smile, even if it was small, after what just happened. "Okay… We need to leave." She looked at me surprised.

"Why?"

"We can't know for sure if it's safe here of not… What if the people that killed mom and dad come back?" It hurt to think about mom and dad really being dead but I had no choice, I had to be Maddie's hero. She nodded and I went to hug her. We stood embracing for a few moments before we parted.

"C-Can you walk?" I shifted on my feet and found pleasantly that my dizziness was gone.

"Yeah… As long as I don't hit my shoulder or anything." We both walked out of the bathroom and into her room while I thought of places we could go. I thought of one person who I knew would take us in.

We packed two bags of clothing but left everything else; I don't think either of us wanted to have much to remind us of mom and dad. "Do you have everything you want?" Maddie nodded and we started to walk out of her room with our backpacks on our backs but no spring in our step.

"Wait!" Maddie cried out and dashed into her room before we got at the end of the hallway. I waited at the end, keeping my gaze from straying to the kitchen, while Maddie rummaged around in her bedroom. She came out holding a large white, stuffed bear and clutched it to her chest tightly. That bear was the one our mom had given her when she had to go to the first day of kindergarten. Maddie had clung to our mom's legs and cried, not wanting to leave mom's side. Mom had promised to take Maddie toy shopping if she went and eventually teachers helped pry Maddie away long enough for mom to leave. Later that day, mom held her promise and took Maddie toy shopping and Maddie found Kuma, her white polar bear. Mom had told her that whenever she felt alone, or when she needed a friend, Kuma would be there to comfort her. The white bear quickly became her best friend and never left her side since.

"Cover your eyes Maddie. I don't want you to see this." She nodded and buried her face into the top of the stuffed animal's head. I grabbed her hand and led her past the opening to the kitchen and into the living room. My foot hit something and I looked down to see my father's favorite bomber jacket. I smiled fondly and let go of Maddie's hand to pick it up.

Mom never liked that thing. She said that it looked like it had gone through heck and back but my dad still kept it. She tried to throw it out when dad was at work but I had gotten it out of the trashcan when she wasn't looking. Dad had patted me on the back and told me, "One day you'll be old enough to wear this. Until then you gotta make sure your grumpy mom doesn't throw it out. Can you do that for me?" Since then I had kept it safe from my mom's wicked ways. I laughed lightly, tears choking up the back of my throat and gathering at the corners of my eyes. I slung it on my shoulders and tried to avoid my injured shoulder as best as I could and inhaled its scent. It smelt like old leather and woods. Opening my eyes, I grabbed the home phone off the receiver. I dialed 9-1-1 and set it down off the hook. I heard the operator's voice ask what my emergency was but I didn't respond. They would come regardless.

"C'mon…" I grabbed Maddie's hand as lead her outside where I told her she could look. Grinning sadly at the sight of dad's old jacket, she squeezed my hand.

"We're going to be okay right Al?" I looked up to the setting sun and wished it all a dream. I knew it wasn't, I knew mom and dad were dead, I knew Maddie and I were orphans, but I also knew that we'd be just fine. We'd be able to make it through. After all, Maddie and I still had each together and we had a place to go. I squeezed her hand back gently and started walking down our front steps.

"Yeah… We'll be okay."

**(A/N: Wow…. That was a sad chapter… Just to be clear, this was a little flash back into Alfred's history. He and Maddie didn't know about the whole wolf changing into humans at that time so I tried to make them seem ignorant of the fact that their parents were wolves as well. This is the longest chapter so far and I hope that the next one will be even longer! :D I'm sorry for making Alfred's past sad, I do it with all of my characters~ Oh and later on in the story I'll have more about Al's history and Arthur's as well. Both will be sad, just a heads up. I want to thank everyone sincerely. You guys have been giving me so much support! Each review, favorite, and follow means so much to me! Thank you guys, really. :'D There will be a good bit of gender bending, and for that, I apologize. I know some people, like me, don't really like it but it was necessary. I will have another chapter up by next Friday I promise! This story took me longer to finish and plan and I had gotten sick. :P I hope you guys like the way the story is going! Oh, and I decided on UsUk if you were wondering. Reviews are immensely appreciated! See you next time! Bye!)**


	4. Author's Note! (Sorry)

_**THIS IS AN AUTHOR'S NOTE CHAPTER.**_

Hey, guys. I have confess. I've lost drive on this story. It's only been up for a bit but really… I never intended to even post this story. I dunno… Do you guys want me to continue it? I have some of the plot written down and I have most things sorted out. *shrugs* I love writing but I just can't motivated to write this… I'd like to be able to continue this and not have to wait months for me to get inspired for me to do so. But, again, I'm incredibly grateful for all the positive feedback! And I'm sorry for changing the summary and rating around so much, I want to get it just right! :D I hope that within a few days I can start writing this again! As for some things I want to go ahead and clear up,

Lots of genderbending will be taking place!

Lots of cussing!

Lots of little things that will lead up to big events!

Lots of OOC-ness!

(later) Lots of almost-smutty moments!

And also, later I may have derogatory terms for homosexuals and maybe some other offensive terms. I will try not to have to use them for I do NOT like doing so but it may be unavoidable. Please just note that I am not trying to offend anyone, just trying to best put certain characters' personalities into perspective. I get offended when people insult my sexuality too so I'm not doing it to be hateful. These comments WILL BE MINIMAL though. Just a heads up!

Plus, character death. I don't plan to kill any main characters, (I.e. Arthur, Alfred, Madeleine, etc.) but I will be killing quite a few OCs and a few canon characters I feel the need to kill. I will try not to rub anyone the wrong way with the deaths but sometimes I can't help but kill off someone's favourite character.

Some pretty grotesque scenes will come into play. Some already have (I.e. Alfred's parents.) but again, it is unavoidable. (At least in my eyes)

Ah, yes, OCs. Plenty of those here but they're not getting with any canon characters. They will simply serve as 'spot-holders' of sorts. I could've had those spots filled with original Hetalia characters but it just wouldn't make sense. None will be too overpowered, nor will they become 'Mary-Sues'. They won't be 3D characters, they'll be relatively flat but regardless, I feel the need to warn you.

This story will have a pretty meaty plot so I hope it'll be an expansive story. I plan to develop Alfred and Arthur's relationship slowly-but not turtle-slow. Usually, if something is unclear, I'll have an author's note in the next chapter explaining it, or I'll have it clarified within the context of a few chapters.

I don't want to make you guys wait a long time for a new chapter. I know how frustrating it is to not have a new chapter to read at least weekly. If I do take a while to update (more than 2 weeks), you guys have all rights to PM me or leave a 'hurry-your-slow-bum-up' review.

And lastly, I am in the middle of moving back across the Atlantic Ocean so I can help my granddad while I'm going through this whole, "I-may-like-this-guy-but-I-don't-know-what-to-do" phase. Not to mention my studies are starting to get harder. I'll be kind of stressed for a bit so please be patient as I try to sort out this hectic period in life one calls 'teenage-hood.'

Thank you so much for reading this bit! I will try to have a new chapter out by Friday but I really don't want to under-deliver because of my lack of inspiration. Thank you for understanding loves! Hope to see you soon!~ And remember, reviews are love!


	5. Apologies and murders

**(DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN HETALIA)**

"A-Al?" I could hear Maddie's soft voice somewhere close to me. Someone, probably Maddie, shook my shoulder and that was the trigger. Slowly, I felt my consciousness returning and I groaned.

"Ung…" I blinked my eyes open and found Maddie's worried face over mine.

"Al! Are you okay?" I groaned again, suddenly flipped over onto my side and pulled the thin sheet that was covering my body, over my head.

"Five more minutes…" I heard her huff and I imagined what her face would look like. It'd probably be red from slight anger and embarrassment; her eyes would be trying to glare though she's totally harmless, her bottom lip pouted out and her arms crossed while her foot tapped impatiently on the floor. I snickered at the image and yelped when I felt her slap my head.

"Alfred F. Jones, if you do not get up right now, you will not get pancakes for at least a week," Her voice was still soft but it was firm; she wasn't joking. My eyes shot open and I flew out of bed.

"No! Maddie! C'mon!" I whined and saw her relax slightly. She uncrossed her arms and I flinched a bit, thinking that she was going to hit me. Instead, she lunged forward and hugged my neck tightly.

"Al… I thought Ivan had seriously hurt you…" I wrapped my arms around her waist and squeezed back while I rested my chin on her shoulder.

"Nah! I'm a hero and heroes never die!" I grinned but quickly stopped when she started naming superheroes that had died. "Shut up!" I whined playfully and wiggled out of her grasp. I crossed my arms over my chest and she giggled slightly. She really was worried for me… I smiled slightly. Her eyes widened and a look of worry crossed her face

"Oh no! The pancakes!" She turned around and dashed out of the room to go tend to the pancakes. Sighing, I turned my torso around and heard my back pop. I grabbed my Captain America t-shirt and slipped it on over my head. I looked down and saw a framed photo of Maddie, Gilbert, Natalia, and Me. My heart clenched painfully as I bent down and picked it up. Absentmindedly, I rubbed my thumb over Natalia's pouting face. She hadn't wanted to go to the park on that day but I had convinced her to go. It was almost like a double date and everyone had enjoyed themselves… Tears started to form in my eyes and I choked back a sob. It hurt… It hurt knowing I wouldn't ever see her again… It hurt knowing that she was gone… That I had lost the love of my life… I laughed bitterly as I rubbed my eyes trying to get rid of the tears. I took one more look at the picture before I placed it back down. I still had a job to do… I was the pack leader; I had to be strong… But God I wanted to just cry… I wanted nothing more than to lay down on the bed and wallow in misery… But Natalia wouldn't want me to do that. She'd probably break my neck for even attempting that. That or use her precious knife to cut me. I pushed my memories back, pushed my gasses on, and dragged one foot in front of the other until I reached the kitchen.

"Hey Birdie!" Gilbert, one of the two other alpha males in my pack, came bounding in and basically tackled my sister in a hug before smashing his lips to hers.

"Gross, get a room." I stuck my tongue out at the couple, obviously grossed-out at the make out session that was about to take place in my dining room.

"Jealous of your sister? Don't worry." Gil unattached himself from Maddie and swaggered over to me. His finger found my chin as he dragged his digit across it, "There's plenty of my awesome-ness to go around! Keseseses." He then turned his attention to my sister again, who was setting out a plate for him and herself. I turned on my heal, no longer hungry, when I saw him start groping her.

"Geez, you'd think that after mating season's done they'd have calmed down…" I raked a hand through my hair and continued walking until I got outside.

"Alfred!" I heard Rina call for me and turned around to find the mother figure running towards me with her… Uh… Eyes… Glittering in worry. (Pfft. XD Yeah, eyes.)

"Hey Rina! How're you doi-" My question was cut off as she engulfed me in a hug. As she squished my head into her over-sized bosom, she rocked me back and forth.

"Oh, Alfred, I was so worried!" She clutched the side of my head and pushed me out so she could look at me. "Did Ivan hurt you? Is anything wrong?" Her grip squished my lips together and I made an indignant squawk.

"–'m ok'y R'na," I replied to the best of my abilities, "pl'se st'p squ'shing my f'ce (please stop squishing my face)." She squeaked, quickly dropped my face, and recoiled her hands.

"Sorry. Huh?" She turned around and I craned my neck around to see Arthur standing behind her in his human form. "I'll, uh, go. Bye Alfred," She turned around to me and waved while flashing me a little smile, "I'm sorry for hurting your lips," She said quickly before walking away from the two of us.

"Uh… Do you need something Artie?" I asked, not really knowing what he was here for. Honestly, there's no reason he should be here. Gilbert was already banned from their clan for leaving, so he couldn't be here to try and coax him into returning, and my land was out of the way of his so he couldn't be passing through for traveling. The only other reason would be to-

"I came to apologize." Huh. I never thought I'd hear those words come from him.

"Why?" I said hesitantly.

"I'll only say this once, so listen carefully. A few nights ago, when I found you in my territory, I didn't realize what you had been hinting at until after I had reached my house. Your mate had died and I didn't offer any condolences or assistance. Instead, I insulted you and your pack, and gave you threats." He sighed and continued, "I came here to say I'm sorry for my behavior and for your loss. I hope you can grieve in peace. Good day." His sentence became stressed and rushed. With a slight nod, he turned around and began to walk away but was greeted with a woman with long wheat-coloured hair and emerald green eyes. She glared at him and said something that I did not hear. His body was extremely stiff when he turned around to face me again. He glared at me and crossed his arms, "And… The Higher powers want to know if you would be interested in combining clans…"

I looked at him surprised. Join clans… Really? The Higher ups have never done this before. Usually they have a strict policy that clans may not casually interact.

"…Why?" I asked again. This was honestly starting to scare me. He sighed angrily at me and glared even harder.

"Is that the only bloody word you know! I have no idea why they want to combine us! I am more than capable of running my own clan." The woman elbowed him in the ribs and he hissed in pain. "Fine! I'll tell him." He turned to me again. "The truth is… Over half of my clan was murdered last night."

**(A/N. Hey guys… ^^' I just want to say, I AM SO SORRY FOR THE WAIT. I have had a shit ton of bullcrap hit me and I haven't been able to write. But! I now have plenty of time to write so I will start working on an uploading schedule! :D This chapter was more of a filler to be honest which is why it was so short. I /will/ have the next chapter up by Wednesday; I PROMISE. And seriously, you guys rock. I've been getting so much support for this story- it's insane. Thank you so much. Well, until next time, bye loves! :D *Remember, Reviews are love!~**


	6. Storm Warning

**(DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN HETALIA)**

"What?" I asked, dumbfounded.

He sighed, irritated, "Five of my members were poisoned, shredded, or shot last night. That means I am now below the requirement for having a legitimate clan. The Higher powers have made a deal that proposes the idea of our group combining and so, in order to keep my status as clan leader, I accepted." I stood there looking between the girl and him trying to figure out if they were serious. Shouldn't they be at least a little sad? Or remorseful? Or emotional at all? Five of their members were killed last night and both of them looked like they couldn't care less.

I shook my head, "Sorry dude, but I already have three Alpha males. One more and I'll be over the limit, hormones will be off the hook, especially with mating season right around the corner." I hated having to turn down people, especially when termination was possible, but I just couldn't risk the lives of my women. I saw the long haired female walk back over to Arthur and whisper something in his ear. Once done, he turned around and rolled his eyes.

"It seems that I can work around this. All I have to do is change my Alpha status to a Beta," Arthur said matter-of-factly. My eyes widened, _was he serious._ How could he just _give up his Alpha status?_

"Are you sure? You can't gain it back ya know…" I asked hesitantly. His response was a nod and the woman stepped up.

"I am an Omega. My husband is a Beta. Don't expect us to bow to your command because you are now our Alpha." She walked up to me and glared straight into my eyes, "And don't you ever, _ever_, try to mate with me. If you do, I will personally break your penis off and throw it in lava." She turned around and walked back into the woods. My eyes opened wide and my mouth dropped open, was she serious?

"I- I'm not like that!" I yelled after her. Hanging my head slightly, I sighed at the defeat. Oh well… When I looked back up, Arthur was gone and I was alone.

"Fucking perfect," A voice rang out and I turned around to see Gil standing with his arms crossed, "there's a reason I left that group. Arthur's a total un-awesome dip-shit." He glared and became mad, "Why the fuck did you accept! We can handle ourselves. Just because your little whore died, doesn't mean that-" He was cut off by my fist hitting his nose, and almost breaking it.

"Shut your mouth, Gilbert. You. Know. Nothing." I left him cradling his nose and cursing in German.

When I walked into the house, I was positively fuming. My sister, Maddie, ran over and lightly touched my shoulder. "Al?" She asked with her timid voice, "What's wrong? Your ears are coming in." Bringing my hands to the top of my head, I, indeed, felt the soft, yet pointy ears that sat upon my head in wolf form.

"I'll tell you what's wrong; your little asshat of a mate needs to learn respect or he will be forced to revert back a level." I knew what I was saying was harsh and uncaring but I didn't care. What happened to showing respect for the dead? Or even respect for your superiors? Her gasp shook me enough to help me calm down a bit.

"Al… Why? You know how much that hurts…"Her voice became quiet, "And how deadly it can be…" I stood back a bit and looked at her, taking in her scared and saddened features. It was true. I knew how much it hurt to revert back a level. We had all seen it happen as a form of punishment. Your entire wiring was redone and made you into something you weren't. I looked at the floor and bit my lip, remembering my dad's words,

"_Your bones shrink and your muscles too. Hair thins and your personality becomes the exact opposite. Imagine having your skin turned inside out and that's nothing compared to this pain. Most men go insane from having their DNA rewritten because it's just not natural."_

When I looked back up, Maddie was gone and I knew that I wouldn't be talking to her for a long while. Sighing heavily, I ran my hands through my hair and went back to my room. When I pushed my heavy wooden door open, I saw Rina sitting on my freshly made bed. In surprise, I asked, "Rina? Do you need something?" She looked at me with heavy and teary eyes.

"Ivan's gone."

I stood in shock. _What- How- Why- WHAT?!_

"What do you mean Ivan's gone! He can't be just /gone/. He must've left a note or told someone or-or something!" I almost yelled. What's going on? Why were so many of the Wolves dying!

"He-" A sob broke through her tears and she ran into my arms with tears running down her face, "He left his scarf! He never leaves that scarf!" Her head buried into my shoulder and I hugged her tightly. Ivan was her little brother.

"I'm sorry, Rina. I'm so so sorry." I stroked her hair and tried to console her as best I could. First her sister, now Ivan… How much was this girl going to have to suffer? "Do you think he may have just gone on a human watching trip? You know how he likes going on those when he's distressed."

"B-But his scarf…"

"He probably just left it at home for safe keeping… You know how protective he is of that tattered old thing. Or maybe, he left it for you to find comfort in…" I said with a soft and soothing voice. Her big, blue, watery eyes looked up at me and my heart chipped.

She sniffled, "You think so?"

In all honesty, I was more or less lying through my teeth but I couldn't handle someone as sweet as Rina crying, "I'm positive. Now, Maddie made some pancakes not too long ago; why don't you go get some and then take a nap? You won't have to do your dailys today." Rina nodded and went off to the kitchen.

I flopped onto my bed and closed my eyes to give myself some time to think.

_First Nat, then Arthur's members, and now Ivan? Something isn't adding up. Plus the Higher Powers were combining two groups- something that the Rules say couldn't happen unless it was absolutely necessary._

I rolled onto my side and looked out the window. Even though the sun was shining, I knew a storm was coming. And it was coming soon.

**(A/N: Guys, let me start off by saying that I am really sorry. I didn't keep my promise and look, it's been nearly **_**two months **_**since I last updated. And now, with this chapter, it's still a filler and it's unfairly short. I'm still getting adjusted to everything and with school starting back, I will be busy. But! I will try to update monthly if not weekly. And I want to say a big **_**THANK YOU **_**to everyone who has given me support even when it's clear I don't deserve it. Stay awesome guys and keep a look out for this story more often. I'm raising the stakes. More drama, more death, and more madness. )**


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